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By Jon Jackson and Monica Sager
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Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky fell and sprained his wrist on Tuesday after a Senate Republican lunch on Capitol Hill, his office told with Newsweek.
Medical staff were reportedly seen entering McConnell's office, but Republican Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming said McConnell only sustained "a small scratch."
McConnell, 82, sustained a cut to his face as well as a sprained wrist. His spokesperson, however, said he is allowed to continue to work.
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"Leader McConnell tripped following lunch," a spokesperson for the Kentucky Senator told Newsweek. "He sustained a minor cut to the face and sprained his wrist. He has been cleared to resume his schedule."
Republican Senator John Thune of South Dakota told reporters McConnell was "fine."
McConnell has had several health scares in the past. In March, the senator was briefly hospitalized after a fall at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in Washington, D.C. He fractured a rib and was concussed.
In July of 2023, while deplaning from a flight that was canceled at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, McConnell fell. He was not seriously hurt, but McConnell has recently been using a wheelchair as a precaution while at airports, according to NBC News.
In the same month, he was seen blank-faced after he abruptly trailed off during a sentence while speaking at a news conference. The nearly 20 seconds of McConnell being froze brought on concerns about his overall health. However, he told reporters at the time he was "fine."
McConnell spoke with President Joe Biden after the news conference incident and later joked that "I told him I got sandbagged."
When McConnell was 2 years old, his upper left leg was paralyzed by a polio attack in 1944. He received treatment at the Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation.
How long has Mitch McConnell served as Senate minority leader?
The Kentucky Senator announced in February that he was going to step down from his leadership position after the 2024 election.
McConnell has been the Republican leader since 2007, which makes him the longest serving upper chamber leader of any party.
When is Mitch McConnell up for reelection?
It is unknown whether McConnell will seek reelection, but his position is up for a vote in 2026.
McConnell won his first Senate election in 1984. Throughout his time in office, he has become more conservative, as one of his biographers called it a transformation "from a moderate Republican who supported abortion rights and public employee unions to the embodiment of partisan obstructionism and conservative orthodoxy on Capitol Hill."
Update: 12/10/24 3:45 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information from Senator Mitch McConnell's office and about the lawmaker's background.
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